A mathematical description of glitches in neutron stars

Abstract

In a pulsar, there are gaps and difficulties in our knowledge of glitches, mainly because of the absence of information about the physics of the matter of the star. This has motivated several authors to suggest dynamical models that interpret most of the astronomical data. Many predictions are based on the assumption that the inner part is analogous to the structure of matter of superfluids. Here, we illustrate a new mathematical model, partially inspired by the dynamics of superfluid helium. We obtain two evolution equations for the angular velocities (of the crust and of superfluid), which are supported by another evolution equation for the average vortex line length per unit volume. This third equation is more delicate from an analytical perspective and is probably at the origin of glitches. We identify two stationary solutions, corresponding to the straight vortex regime and the turbulent regime.